1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to food cleaning apparatus, and more particularly to a food purifier which employs with ozone technology to kill the microorganism and remove the chemical substance, such as preservative and pesticide, so as to sterilize the food.
2. Description of Related Arts
Nowadays, ozone is considered as one of the most effective disinfectants for purification in food processing. Ozone is called activated oxygen and contains three atoms of oxygen instead of the normal oxygen having two oxygen atoms that we breathe.
There are basically two methods of producing ozone, which are ultra-violet and corona discharge. Most ozone generator uses the corona discharge method, simulating in essence, lightning. Ozone generator utilizing UV is hard to find because it is inefficient and unreliable, and very costly to service compared to the corona discharge equipment.
The theory of the corona discharge is to ionize the air to produce ozone. Accordingly, an electron reacts with oxygen to break down the oxygen into the oxygen atom wherein the oxygen atom is then reacted with another oxygen to form ozone.
Accordingly, it is known that ozone is one of the strongest oxidizer in the world wherein ozone is commonly used for disinfecting, detoxification, and air deodorization, as well as food preservation. In addition, ozone is the safest and most natural purification and disinfection agent for fresh produce and water treatment. It is the strongest and most ideal antimicrobial, bactericide, fungicide, and deodorizer, detoxifying agent, germicide, sanitizer, sterilizer, and vermicide agent. Thus, many researches illustrate the use of ozone can extend the food product storage life.
Because ozone is only partially soluble in water, special gas/liquid contacting and related equipment are required to provide its maximum cost-effectiveness in a safe manner. In water, ozone can be readily decomposed to produce the hydroxyl free radical (HO), which is a much stronger oxidizing agent than is molecular ozone, allowing certain chemical pollutants to be oxidized to destruction that molecular ozone cannot oxidize effectively. Yet the hydroxyl free radical has only a microsecond half-life, and thus is not as effective for controlling microorganisms as is molecular ozone.